Interview with Joan Kilby, Author of Mad About You and Giveaway!

[Manga Maniac Cafe] Good morning, Joan! Describe yourself in five words or less.

[Joan Kilby] That’s hard! Curious, dreamy, disciplined, kooky, kind

[Manga Maniac Cafe] Can you tell us a little about Mad About You?

[Joan Kilby] Mad About You is a best friends-to-lovers story, one of my favorite romance tropes, combined with a fake engagement which always makes for a lot of fun. It’s sexy and sweet, with touches of humor and deep emotion, starring Scott, a hot geek hero – not an oxymoron in this case – and Cassy, the girl-next-door who’s loved him since they were seven years old.

[Manga Maniac Cafe] Can you share your favorite scene?

[Joan Kilby] My favorite scene is actually a series of scenes where the Scott and Cassy are given the Bridal Suite during what’s supposed to be a business weekend. Cassy works up the courage to make the leap from friends to lovers and comes out in a sexy negligee to try to seduce Scott. She ends up mortified as Scott works overtime to keep their relationship on a platonic basis. Later, they have to share a bed and now it’s Scott who can no longer deny his true feelings. Finally getting these two to make love was extremely…satisfying. 🙂

[Manga Maniac Cafe] What gave you the most trouble with the story?

[Joan Kilby] Not letting Scott’s geeky techie employees take over the story. They were so much fun to write I wanted to spend more time with them. Maybe someday they’ll have their own stories.

[Manga Maniac Cafe] What’s one thing you won’t leave home without?

[Joan Kilby] My shoes. I work from home so I live in yoga pants and slippers. Once I was totally caught up in my story but I absolutely had to go to the grocery store before we all starved to death. I was on the highway before I realized I was wearing my computer glasses — good for about ten feet. Hey, no problem, I know the way so well I could drive there blindfolded. But as I got out of the car, I saw I was still in my fuzzy lambswool slippers. Ever since that day, I always check my feet before I get in the car.

[Manga Maniac Cafe] Name three things on your desk right now.

[Joan Kilby] Four dead AA batteries from my mouse. Like Cassy in Mad About You I have a computer Solitaire addiction. You run through batteries in no time with all that clicking. But you know, my subconscious is working on the story while I’m playing.

A pack of sugar-free mints. I’m doing the 5:2 diet where you fast two days a week. The occasional mint keeps me from gnawing my own arm off on fast days.

A shower timer for when my allotted Solitaire games are up. I set the timer and write for an uninterrupted 30 minutes. Then another 30 minutes, then another…

[Manga Maniac Cafe] You have been granted the use of one superpower for one week. Which power would you choose, and what would you do with it?

[Joan Kilby] Great question! I would love to be able to fly. Some of my best dreams are about flying. I wouldn’t do anything particular, just cruise around the neighborhood, peer into people’s backyards, fly along the coast and look at the dolphins, over the treetops and check out the birds, visit friends without having to get in the car. I could even wear my slippers while I’m flying.

[Manga Maniac Cafe] What are some books that you enjoyed recently?

[Joan Kilby] Lately I’ve been reading Courtney Milan’s The Brothers Sinister series. Before that I read The Red Tent by Anita Diamant, Wanton Heat by Nicola Marsh and Satisfaction by Sarah Mayberry.

Accountant Cassy Morris knows she’s putting her heart on the line when she agrees to move in with her best friend, multi-millionaire geek Scott Thornton while she manages his nanotechnology lab and finds an angel investor for his revolutionary new product. She’s loved him forever even though he’s only ever regarded her as a friend. But Cassy never could refuse Scott anything…

When Scott is named Seattle’s sexiest man, the attention from women threatens to get in the way of him finishing his pet project and putting it on the market. Cassy steps up once again and pretends to be his fiancé. A lifetime of repressed sexual tension explodes in a passionate affair. Soon Scott is wondering how he can convince Cassy to turn their fake engagement into reality…

About Joan:

When I’m not working on a book I can often be found sipping a latte at my local cafe and indulging my favorite past-time of people watching.

Growing up in Vancouver, Canada, I always wanted to be a writer. In university I took a detour to study marine biology. I worked as an environmental biologist for many years until the birth of my first child.

I loved staying at home with my kids because not only could I raise them myself but I could indulge my first love — writing. I soon realized story-telling was what I was always meant to do.

Twenty years later I’m still hooked on writing. I’ve published over twenty-five books with Harlequin. I’m now writing for Entangled Publishing and have a couple of self-publishing projects on the go.

I live in Melbourne, Australia, with my husband and three grown children. As well as writing and hanging out in cafes (Melbourne has the best coffee!) I go to the gym, walk my dog, cook, hike, garden, swim and read. I belong to Toastmasters Club and numerous writing organizations.